Bahamas Update - week 7

Well, the start of the week the weather wasn’t too great so Monday we were given a free day so we all went off to do Island Exploration. We all split into groups and hitchhiked all over getting rides from the locals. Tuesday we did some fish point dives at Amphiteatre and started our underwater fish tests. Wednesday and Thursday, again we didn’t dive unfortunately as the weather didn’t permit it, but then Friday and Saturday we had the opportunity to dive a blue hole. Half of us dove Friday afternoon and the rest Saturday morning. We went to Churches Blue Hole on the island and did a 30 minute dive at 18m. Saturday night was a night of celebrations as it was our Expedition Leader’s birthday, so this was definitely a good night. A few of us then got a ride up to Forfar, the American camp on the island, and stayed there the night. Sunday morning we all came back and the group recovered together in the sun (Will, a little bit too much as he got horrendously burnt) and got ready for diving again Monday.

Stevie and James

Bahamas Update - week 9

This week the weather has been good so we’ve done a lot of diving. The rescue divers have all gained their rescue qualifications and we’ve done a lot of survey dives so we’ve gone to a number of different dive sites and have been able to see more of the reefs around Andros. On Wednesday we all went on a fun dive and spent half an hour stealing each other’s fins underwater, and so using our air much faster than normal! On Friday most of us hitchhiked to Nicholl’s Town in the North of the island and spent the day there lying on the beach and eating chicken. In the evening we went to Queen’s Park, where the locals go on a Friday evening to dance and drink, and we, of course, threw ourselves into the local way of life. On Saturday we all went to Somerset beach, an absolutely gorgeous beach by AUTEC, the naval base. Some of us walked all the down the beach trying to find an oceanic blue hole we were told about but after a very long walk of making little progress along the beach we turned around, arriving back to find people going out for rides on a mini catamaran, photos of which can be found on Youtube when you look for AUTEC sailing! Only one week left in the Bahamas now, let’s see what happens!

Katie (and Joe, who did nothing)

Bahamas Update - Week 8

The week started by the entire group finishing the PADI DEEP DIVING SPECIALITY on Monday going to a site called ‘3 Anchors’ at the tongue of the ocean, where we went down just past the edge of the tongue at 40 meters allowing us to look directly down into the complete darkness which was 6000ft down. An unforgettable experience. A few members of the group were lucky enough to see a 12ft Great Hammerhead Shark swim a few meters from them, whereas others were lucky to see a Sea Turtle swim past. The second final dive for the specialty was at a site called Coliseum where we went down to 30 meters. On Tuesday we finished off the final underwater fish tests and starting practice surveying, by the end of the day everyone had passed the fish test and had done a practice survey over a regular site we use called Ampi. We ended the day with a few drinks in celebration of Becky’s Birthday.

On Wednesday we had a free day for island exploration and another day to top up the tans. Thursday we were back in the water and continued with practice surveys at Ampi, allowing us to feel more comfortable with surveying. On Friday we got back in the water for a morning dive before the weather changed allowing us to do one final practice survey before we would start before on the following Monday. On Friday one of the volunteers Harvey left to carry on his travelling so 1 member down, a few in the group decided to head down to Queen’s Park for the regular Andros Nights where music and drinks and of course conch fritters were there in plenty!

On Saturday the group headed to a local swimming pool to continue with the RESCUE DIVER CERTIFICATION. After the group had finished we all headed up to Nicholls’s Town hitching a 70 mile round trip up the island, to a Music and Arts Festival being held for the day by the local community. The festival had for sale many of the local crafts found on the island and foods and music common in the Bahamas. We all head back down to Timmy’s Bar for the evening, where we proceeded to celebrate Oli’s Birthday which was the following day. On Sunday we had our usual free day where a few went off exploring down to Small Hope Bay Lodge and others relaxed by the beach and sea.

Highlights of the week included the amount of diving we got done managing 7 dives due to the excellent weather we were fortunate to have last week! The group all finished the Deep Diving Specialty and the fish tests. We managed to eat well due to the continual kind donation of food by a member of staff at AUTEC Naval Base and we were all ready for surveying in the following week.

By Will

Bahamas Update - Week 6

This week in Andros we dove at Three Anchors, a site which leads to the Tongue of the Ocean. Here we completed some of our deep dives and the group saw a reef shark and two turtles! The rest of the week we continued our fish point dives and we all passed our fish exams!

We also went to Junkanoo, a local Bahamian festival, where the school children dress up and dance, we got to paint the children’s faces that we teach during the week to make them look like Indians, which we all enjoyed immensely, giving the girls the idea to show support for the children and paint even our own faces. We had a cracking night out which then lead onto Saturday night which is of course party night … Good times!

Stacey and Sophie

Bahamas Update - week 4

Week 4 at Greenforce started on Monday 7^th February, where we were all greeted by fantastic weather here at Stainard Creek J We were awake early to begin all our advanced open water certification in deep and drift diving.

The first group of the morning got going with the deep elements, where they witnessed a reef shark around 10m below them after they entered the water. This was exciting for many of us as it was the first time that some of us have seen a shark swimming in the waters with us.

Great weather followed in the coming days of the week, so on Wednesday 9^th February, all of us decided to go snorkeling down at the point which was a 15 minute walk. This was also exciting as under the beating sun, 4 of us got to see and swim with a spotted eagle ray. This was also exciting as they are spectacular creatures to see.

Thursday 10^th February brought hot weather again as we made our way down to the school at 2 o’clock. After a successful hour teaching session we later played the Forfar guys at football at Queens Park. 3-2 to Forfar L

Friday 11^th February all of us at Greenforce took a trip down to Uncle Charlie’s Blue Hole, where we all jumped off trees and rope swings for 2 hours J It was great fun!

Saturday was a relaxing day, as we were able to complete some knowledge reviews in our PADI books for our advanced certification. Saturday night was a treat as we were given pizza for a meal and then headed north for a motel party along with Forfar, which was great fun all night

Bahamas Update - week 3

We started week three by finishing off learning our fish and with a shark lecture by C.J. including some incredible pictures from her experiences including some from the neighboring island of Bimini. Everyone then started learning for the fish test on Friday of course while lying on the beach. We are all now beginning to settle in to the island life.

We completed our PADI Open Water Qualification. We dove at two different dive sites the first called ‘Kateatorium’ where we did two of the dives and saw a great barracuda. Then on Thursday and Friday we dove at ‘Ampi’; where again we saw a barracuda and some stingrays as well as various other fish. We did some underwater fish points with Sam and Jules. On Friday we did our final PADI open water exam and our first land fish test.

On Thursday afternoon we did our second afternoon in school, where shark songs and food web lectures were done as well as small wrestling matches with the manic school kids. On Sunday most people headed up to Jack’s Restaurant to watch the Superbowl. The rest of the week we have been enjoying the sea and beautiful white beach as well as topping up the tans while learning our fish for the next test.

Will & Harvey

Bahamas Update - week 2

The week started off with more fish lessons and tests to check our progress. We also were given a lecture about mangroves, which are heavily present in Andros. We followed up with a field trip to view mangroves near our camp led by CJ.

On Thursday we made our first visit to the local school with lectures that we planned, which was more or less successful since the children were very excited to see us. On Friday we did our first dive to Staniard Rock, which was part of our confined water dive in the process to achieve certification. Everyone was very excited to finally be in the water.

On Saturday we experienced our first open water dive, which was absolutely amazing, including seeing a barracuda and many other fish that we had learned about in fish class.

Lots of love from/ viva Deutschland from

Kanna

Bahamas Blog – January Phase 2011, Week 1

We arrived in sunny Andros Tuesday afternoon and were greeted by our pleasant and enthusiastic staff wearing their Gapforce shirts. Then we took taxis to our new home away from home in Staniard Creek.

We were all happy to see the ocean as our front yard and were all eager to get started with our diving. Since we arrived we have been going out on snorkel trips and on Thursday some of the

group were fortunate enough to see a whale shark! In doing these trips we are familiarizing ourselves with all the fish we are learning about in fish class and this way when we start collecting data on the reef we are well prepared.

On Saturday we were taken to nearby Rainbow Blue Hole where we did our

swim tests before we begin our Open Water training. So far our days have been filled mostly with great snorkeling,

relaxing on the beach, taking walks in the nearby area, seeing puppies, doing our chores, having fish classes and lectures, watching movies with ocean related topics as well as the PADI Open Water DVD, cooking (challenge for some of us J), eating, and supporting our local bar.

A great start of our adventure!

Tanzania Expedition - Update

5th October –

First day of living with the Masaai tribe. We met all of their neighbours and wives. There were so many tiny children wanting to hold our hands and climb on us, so we were all carrying them around at some point. We explored the Masai ‘bomas’ and huts. The only problem now is learning Masai as well as Swahili, which is confusing but worth it; a lot of Masai speak fluent Swahili anyway. It seems the thing to do at the moment is just smile and nod, which is what they do back, and so everyone’s happy.
Afterwards Dom drove us around the expanse of Esilailei which, upon arrival, is indescribable. The land is largely flat, due to the dryness before the short rain season, after which everything will apparently start to turn progressively green. Behind this for the entire drive, however, we drew closer to majestic rows of blue mountains, receeding with mist far off into the landscape. Towards the more forested areas, and Mto Wa Mbu, everyone waves and shouts, to try their English or lure you into their bar/shop. The time was perfect too; the sun had cooled off and was just about setting, which sends Esilailei into a romantic haze. summoing the time of the welcome cermony.

We had heard and so already knew the Masai welcoming ceremony, so of course, on return they had a small goat waiting for us, tied to a tree. I’d anticipated this moment for a while, but admittedly felt slightly nervous. By the time the cermony was over it was pitch black, and people were playing Reggae out of our car, which lightened the mood. We ended the night by cooking and eating the goat meat. Aaaw yeeeaaaahh!

10th October –

...

We went to the Masai market (on every Thursday) to buy some Masai blankets and sit under a shelter on a bench for hours drinking Banana wine. Good times. It tastes like 10% scrumpy, and it’s 500 shillings a bottle, which is hardly anything. Drunk Masai elders kept coming up to chat, so it was a great opportunity to learn some more of the language. Dom’s friend ‘Dutchy’ sold us all a ton of jewelery, with a free gift, for ‘goody price’.

After a sad farewell to our week eight leavers it was back to our daily routine with lots more jobs to do...so a trip to Namena was exactly what the doctor ordered to boost the spirits of the remaining eight volunteers! With our old pal Up & Under up and running again, we set off across the choppy seas for a two tank dive. After an amazing exploration of Grand Central Station seasickness got the better of us during our surface interval so it was a blessing in disguise when a broken mask forced the second dive to be aborted in favour of a return to camp.

However there was no rest for the wicked as it was our final ladies night that same day which meant cooking for thirty and drinking grog late into the night. The rest of the week we were kept busy with our rescue diver training which we all passed!!! Our final Saturday party was a lonely affair with the number on camp nearly halved but once the Bounty rum kicked in, spirits were high!

The next couple of days were rather emotional, starting with our final Sunday in Navatu, followed by our only nine weeker, Lauren, leaving.

But once again the perfect cure was....NAMENA! Our recently qualified Dive Master, Trainee Steve, marked the occasion of his 100th dive by going commando, save for a sulu...a brave decision as he was chosen to lead the dive...we enjoyed it very much!

Our final days on Nasonisoni Island were filled with goodbyes.

Firstly to Navatu, who invited us over for a kavalicious Ta-Tau, secondly to our beautiful camp, which we lovingly tidied up (phase 23

- it's never looked so good, enjoy!) and lastly each other. And so phase 22 comes to an end. Thanks for the laughs and the memories, we've had a BANGIN' time!

Ecuador Week 5

At this point we are now old hands at forest living and our task is to finish off building steps. This is not easy work when it’s hot and humid! Despite this we have a great laugh and it felt like a fantastic achievement when we finally completed them. One of the highlights of spending time in the forest was the interesting characters we met there, a mix of scientists and volunteers who had all had intriguing reasons for being out in rural Ecuador. Katie and Adam were also lucky enough to visit the library in the local town of Tabuga which played host to another bunch of great kids eager to play and learn the odd English word. That concludes our time in the dry forest, after this it’s off to the Amazon rainforest for our next adventure!

Ecuador Week 4

A week in and we are now starting to deal with being woken up at the crack of dawn by bullfrogs, howler monkeys and the questionable singing voice of our resident cook Bigote, named after his impressive moustache. This week we are able to explore the local area more and visit the lalo lor project leader Jason’s farm and are introduced to his pig and dog. We also get the chance to meet a few of the kids in the area who are possibly the most energetic children in the world. One should consider themselves lucky if there are less than 5 hanging off you at any one time. Another interesting experience is visiting the nearest town Perdernales. It is certainly well off the tourist trail and gave us a chance to see the real Ecuador. The weekend arrives and it’s off to the beach again, this time we all head to Canoa to surf and relax, while party animal Adam heads to Montanita for a South American fiesta, one in which comes highly recommended. This involves live bands and nightclubs with swimming pools inside!

Ecuador Week 3

We say goodbye to Quito and head off on a 6 hour bus journey to the coast and our digs at the dry forest. It was a slight change from Quito with no electricity and howler monkeys swinging past our rooms at all hours. After a couple of days adjusting to the new surroundings we grew to like the place. This week is when the real work began, and that means machetes...and more machetes, which appear to be used for everything imaginable in rural Ecuador. After a week of conservation our group splits into two and head to the beaches of Canoa and Puerto Lopez for the weekend. Living in the forest offers opportunities to see some of the coolest animals on the planet, including snakes, butterflies and various arachnids that were frequently pointed out by our indigenous tour guide Maximo. Adam was even offered the opportunity to handle a wild snake after Maximo tracked one, an offer which he sensibly declined.

Ecuador Week 2

Seven days in and we are now comfortable with the city and possibly a little too comfortable with each other. The highlight of this week was climbing the live volcano Cotapaxi. Several hours and numerous falls later, particularly by Jess, and we reach the peak flanked by Germans, Belgians and every other nationality imaginable. The cycle ride down was exhilarating and this being Quito the day certainly did not end there. Only 2 of us came out completely unscathed and thus decided to go for a swift drink. In Quito the party rarely ends quietly and we proceeded to return at 7 in the morning.

The next day we go to watch the famous Liga De Quito at the estadio Olympico, home of National football club. South American football is renowned for its exciting and free flowing approach, and this match did not disappoint with 5 goals and a win for top of the table Liga. As the week went on we were able to further practice our newly acquired Spanish with trips to Quito Market and were introduced to our ‘crazy’ team leader Frankie, and our group is finally complete. Quito and a fear of heights are not a great mix as I was to find out, but this did not spoil my trip up the Teleferiqo cable car which offers spectacular views and a concentrated hit of oxygen if one is interested. The week is rounded off with a trip to the beautiful cloud forest Mindo. You are surrounded by natural beauty including humming birds and endless waterfalls. Despite this the best thing about Mindo is the extreme zip lining which seems more like bungee jumping. It’s a great rush and it also offers the best view of the forest. Come night and we had, according to Katie, the ‘greatest pizza in the world’ and of course we partied (again) until the early hours.